He previously led the company's digital customer experience

Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson today announced that Brady Brewer has been promoted to the role of CMO, according to a letter to the coffee chain’s employees. Brewer will report directly to the company’s COO, Roz Brewer, the letter added.

The newly appointed CMO will lead the development and execution of the company’s marketing plans, as well as manage the food and beverage portfolio, the digital customer experience, creative and brand management, data analytics, and consumer insights.

Brewer replaces Matthew Ryan, who was lured away from Walt Disney in 2013 when he was named chief strategy officer. “[Ryan] has made a tremendous impact at Starbucks in both strategy and marketing leadership positions,” a spokesperson said.

Ryan will stay on as an adviser until the end of November, when he will officially leave the company, in order to ensure a smooth transition, the spokesperson said, adding that Ryan made a “personal decision” to leave Starbucks.

An 18-year veteran of Starbucks, Brewer previously led the company’s digital customer experience and was responsible for product discovery, ordering, payment, pick up, delivery and more.

Brewer will continue to lean on that experience in his new role, with a focus on making further progress on creating a frictionless customer experience between the company’s online portal and physical stores.

“Brady’s priority will be to build upon Starbucks legacy of creating unique experiences for our customers through great partners [employees], beautiful stores, and quality coffee, tea, and food in more than 80 markets [31,000 locations] around the world,” a spokesperson said.

Brewer also previously served as COO for Starbucks Japan, one of the company’s largest markets. In the Tokyo-based role, Brewer ran store operations for more than 30,000 employees. He also led brand and marketing strategy, product innovation and digital experiences in the role.

Additional gigs at the coffee chain includes vp of marketing, product and digital innovation for China and the Asia Pacific region and vp of Starbucks’ global card and loyalty program. During that time, Brewer and his team launched the Starbucks mobile app that allowed customers to pay for their transaction using their mobile phone. Brewer also served as vp of marketing in the U.S., where he was responsible for Starbucks’ go-to-market model.